Let Me Show You
by storyman123123
Summary: One-shot. Takes places right after the ending of "Northwest Mansion Mystery." What is so pressing that Dipper leaves McGucket and the secrets of Gravity Falls to "have some fun"? A few loose ends he needed to tie with a certain girl, of course. Reviews welcomed.


**As always, I own none of the characters nor the show. All rights belong to Disney.**

_"Let's have some fun for once, huh?"_

It didn't take long for Dipper to find her by the kitchen doors.

"No, not the green ones, the silver carpets! By the table with the punch and cookies. You've worked here for years. You should know which carpets are my parents favorite," Pacifica berated a butler.

"Yes, miss," the butler replied.

"Send someone to clean the mess this instant," Pacifica ordered. She then caught sight of Dipper approaching her. "Please," she added.

"Miss?" the butler asked, shocked.

"Please send someone to clean it up," Pacifica said, more gently this time. "Pierre."

Pierre the butler smiled. "Yes, miss," he said, exiting through the door.

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Pacifica?" Dipper asked, coming up to her.

"Har har," she said drily, but she smiled as she did so. "I was going to look for you, actually. I wanted to ask you something."

"Funny enough, so did I."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but you go first." Dipper motioned to the bench behind them and sat. Pacifica followed suit, tucking the purple velvet of her dress neatly under her crossed legs.

"You didn't let that ghost out of the mirror on purpose, did you?" she asked tentatively.

"Of course not!" Dipper exclaimed. "Why would you even think that?"

"But you hate my family anyway," Pacifica ignored him. "So… why did you come back? To stop the ghost?"

"Easy," said Dipper. "Mabel."

"Mabel?"

"She was here," Dipper said plainly. "I couldn't leave her in danger, especially when I caused it."

"But you almost died," Pacifica said quietly.

"Well, I love her," Dipper said. "I'd rather die than know that I might have saved her, but didn't."

"Love?" said Pacifica.

"Yeah. Mabel can be crazy and a real pain in the neck sometimes," Dipper laughed. "But she's my sister. And she's the best sister anyone could ever have."

Pacifica stared at the ground and didn't reply.

"What's bugging you?" asked Dipper.

"But… that's not love," Pacifica said weakly. "My parents gave me all the designer clothes and jewelry I could ever buy. They told me they did that because they loved me. That's love too, right?"

Dipper stared at her, at a loss for words. Pacifica seemed to understand and gave a shuddering breath.

"When I was four, I was out playing in the yard when I stubbed my toe. So hard that it started bleeding. I ran into the house and cried in my father's arms.

"He then picked me up and gave me to the nanny, told her to dress my toe. Seconds later, he had driven off. Some business meeting, or a game of golf, or something. He sent me new, nicer shoes later, telling me that the old ones were ruined because of the blood, and that I would love the new pair.

"That was his love," she ended bitterly. "All this time, I thought my parents loved me. But I guess not."

Dipper put a hand on her shoulder. "Remember what I said in the secret room?" he asked. "Just because you're your parents' daughter doesn't mean you have to be like them."

"But I don't know what's right or wrong!" Pacifica cried. "How do I know I'm doing the right thing?"

"Well, look around you," said Dipper, motioning to the citizens of Gravity Falls eating, drinking, laughing and dancing in the hall. "You sacrificed your pride and your reputation to let these people in, and look how happy they are. You showed that you love these people, even if only a little bit. I think that's a step in the right direction."

"So… showing love is sacrificing everything?" Pacifica asked, confused.

"Showing love is knowing what's worth sacrificing for," Dipper said, smiling. Pacifica smiled back.

"Thanks," she said.

"For what?"

"For showing me what love is," Pacifica said. Dipper blushed, and Pacifica put a hand up to her mouth. "I mean – thanks for showing me. Through your sister. You love your sister."

"Right," Dipper stammered. "Mabel. She's a great sister."

They stopped talking and stared off in different directions, trying not to make eye contact.

After a few moments, Pacifica nudged him playfully. "Okay, now your turn," she said. "You had a question?"

"Oh, right," said Dipper. "Was that hug in the outer garden genuine? Or was it just another ploy to trick me into believing I was doing a favor for you?"

Pacifica stared at her feet for a moment. Dipper cleared his throat, understanding the subtext.

"It's cool, don't worry about it," he said, stumbling over his words. "I just… no hard feelings—"

"It was genuine," she finally said.

"What?"

"Look. I don't have many friends, Dipper. And the ones I do have only like me because of my money. Remember those two girls I used to hang out with all the time?"

"Yeah?" Dipper asked carefully.

"They only hung out with me to use me. We used to go shopping every day. But when my credit ran out for the summer, they left me. They stopped hanging out with me, because I was useless to them."

"So?"

"I'm just trying to say, it was nice to feel like I had a friend for once. I got caught up in the moment. It was weird. I didn't…" Pacifica faltered, realizing she was rambling on.

"It wasn't weird," Dipper said.

"Really?"

"Yeah," Dipper smiled. "It was… kinda nice, actually."

Pacifica smiled again, but was distracted by the lights being dimmed.

"Hey, look! The annual Ballroom Dance-Off is beginning!"

"Eh, I've been to better Ballroom Dances," said Dipper off-handedly.

"Really?"

"Nope," Dipper said, chuckling. "Don't even know how to dance."

Pacifica laughed. "I've never danced in one either, dummy. C'mon, let's go."

Dipper put up his hands. "No no no no no," he protested. "No thank you. I don't do dancing. I told you, I don't know even how to dance!"

Pacifica smiled and took Dipper's hand. "Here. Let me show you."

**Hey everyone, it's your boy storyman123123 here. I know I've been on hiatus for a long time with the two other stories, and I apologize - still waiting on college letters and still waiting on my friend's recovery (he is doing better, but still not great). But I just loved last night's episode of Gravity Falls, and though I wasn't a huge fan of it before, I kind of like the Dipper and Pacifica pairing. They bring out the best and the worst in each other, and it's an interesting dynamic to see.**

**Hope you enjoy my thoughts on what happens after Dipper leaves McGucket and the laptop (oh god hype for the next episode), and as always, reviews are super super appreciated. Let me know what you think of my story and the episode!**


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